Although digitized performances continue to increase in fidelity and represent much of the content we experience, audiences still fill theaters, concert halls, and other venues because of the thrill and uncertainty of live performance. This research thrust targets the development and application of novel expressive technologies that will define the future of the live performance. This includes new instruments (tools) enabling artists to push the frontiers of creativity, from new interfaces for shaping sound and visuals in performance, to the re-imagining of performance spaces. Furthermore, this effort will partner artists, technologists, and educators to advancing performance pedagogy to incorporate new expressive technologies and develop new practices.

Exemplar project: Stage++, a live performance space that is visually, physically, and acoustically “reprogrammed” through software as easily as a virtual space. Manipulating each of these dimensions greatly expands the creative palette for directors, designers, and performers and also enables unique audience experiences (e.g., immersive, actuated seating) that cannot be achieved elsewhere.